I run circles around the parking lot of the boxing gym every day that I train (usually about 2 or 3 miles) and on my off-days I (sometimes) run on the sidewalk in my neighborhood. There's a track around the inside of the gym so in crappy weather I run on that.

So instead of roadwork I do parking lot work and sidewalk work and indoor track work.

It also comes down to life conditions / age / goals, etc. Between the job, wife, kids, house, blah, blah, blah, I can get away about three times a week for a couple hours.

Getting in shape to support my MA habit just isn't an option timewise, so I have to make MA my workout. That's how I've gravitated almost completely to grappling, I find that I can do a "technical" workout (i.e. working technique) but can go full bore as far as exertion against a fully resisting opponent. When I was a _ing _un two step sparring drill master, my training would not count as cardio by any stretch of the imagination.

My conditioning may not be as great as if I was really training to be a fighter, but I need to face the reality that I'm a dad, husband, employee, etc. first who happens to do combat sports as a hobby. Most of my "peers" think waddling around a golf course is exercise, so I'm ok with where I'm at.

Short answer: I'm a ***** who says my training is enough.

Originally Posted by Dinosaur AMP

You just can't go wrong when your getting armbar'd to Flogging Molly while a fire fighter is cursing at you in the background. Good stuff!

I predominantly use my class as cardio due to weight training 3x a week and trying to fit in school and work around that as well.

On my off days, I'll do shadowboxing, swim, use the rowing machine, strongman cardio, anything really that gets me moving and doing something. I do run a few miles a few times a month, but mostly to keep a good level of that.

While my cardio is at the suckage stage, I've recently started using Mike Mahler's High Octane Cardio in addition to running 2x/week. I use my kettlebell's and do stickwork as a substitution for the "Heavy Bag HOC Combo" (sticks on a tire instead of punching the heavy bag and kettlebells instead of dumbells).

20 mins to training, 20 mins back. It improved my cardio no end. I noticed a big jump after I'd been cycling for about a month. Now it has kind of plataued but I am sure if I stopped cycling regularly, my cardio would suffer. (My knees would LOVE it though - stupid little Japanese bikes.)

Hmm, running is hard on the knees and ankles, so do a lot of work to try and strengthen these areas of the leg, usually involving straightening the leg as much as possible, and bending it as much as possible, while going down low, sort of like ballet exercises, but keeping the body connections that I am learning from Akuzawa up in Tokyo. Running would be nice, when my ankle recovers.